Design and Process for Preformed Woven,Knitted,and Braided Thermoplastic Composite Reinforced Arrester

Abstract

A new process and associated designs were developed for electrical arresters. When an abnormal voltage surge occurs, the arrester explodes due to the energy released. The composite shell provides the protection needed to prevent the broken arrester fragments from being expunged. Preformed woven, knitted, and braided composite shells, consisting of commingled polypropylene (PP) and E-glass yarn, were fabricated and consolidated in order to reinforce electrical arresters. A braided composite shell, composed of dry glass yarn and neat PP yarn, was designed, processed, and tested to investigate the effect of venting. This braided design allowed the energy released to be vented in the area between glass fiber bundles. Experimental results demonstrate that the woven and braided shells performed better than the knitted shell. A theoretical analysis based on the composite mechanics theory was performed in order to explain the experimental results.